Paris, May 28 (IANS) Serbian great Novak Djokovic slammed the Roland Garros crowd and stated that he hoped he wouldn’t face any more locals as he was booed throughout the match.
Djokovic extended his latest bid for a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title with a four-set victory, 6-3, 6-2, 6-7(9), 6-3, over Royer in the second round. It was the second straight match the Serbian has beaten a Frenchman after knocking out Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the first round.
At one point during the match, Djokovic clapped back at the crowd after he was getting booed and the umpire called for calm. “Ladies and gentlemen, please have some respect for both of the players,” the umpire said. Djokovic quickly said, “They have no respect, no respect.
“I hope I won’t play any more French players for the rest of the tournament,” the Serbian said.
The opening two sets were a bottle of vintage Djokovic. The three-time Roland-Garros winner was reading the patterns of Royer and hitting a series of laser-focused shots. But Royer refused to back downas the he 24-year-old’s perseverance was rewarded as he unleashed his hooked forehand to level at 4-4 in the third set.
Into a tie-break and Djokovic held match point at 6-5. Again, Royer refused to capitulate, bringing bold hitting and agile movement to keep the 24-time major winner on the back foot. A few points later and a Djokovic backhand sailed long, prompting a monumental roar from the Parisian faithful as the clash continued.
“I’m relieved. Obviously, it feels different when you win the match. It’s a very important victory in difficult conditions for both players. It was very hot and I think Valentin deserves big credit for his performance today,” said Djokovic.
“It was a very tough match, a challenge right from the start. It’s normal that things get tricky on court in these sort of conditions and atmosphere. I hope I don’t have to play another French player again until the end of the tournament!” he added.
With a win, the Serb rubber-stamped his record 21st consecutive Roland-Garros third-round showing. On top of that, the 39-year-old became the first man ever to play 120 matches at a sole Grand Slam event, eclipsing Roger Federer’s Wimbledon tally of 119.
The former World No. 1 will next face Brazilian 28th seed Fonseca, who rallied from two sets down to outlast Croatian Dino Prizmic and book his spot in the third round.
–IANS
bc/